A Poem Lovely As A . . . .

When I was a senior in high school I had taken all my required courses and so was able to fill my last semester with electives.  Drama, Choir, any "fun" classes like advanced sewing were already a regular part of my academic schedule.  Art was about the only thing left for me to take.  I enrolled for Art 1 and found myself in a class with a lot of freshmen and a few seniors who, like me, were filling class time.  Don't discount freshmen - it was through one of my younger art classmates that I found singing opportunities at the local Baptist church and where I met my future (now present) spouse.

Requirements for this class were not rigorous.  The first thing we had to buy was a sketch pad and a box of crayons.  The Crayola 24 box was the preference although I think some of my classmates scrounged the art boxes of their younger siblings for supplies while others purchased the deluxe box of 120 including a built in crayon sharpener.  Fools they.  The first thing the art teacher did was grab somebody's crayon and snap it in half, explaining that the rough edge was needed for the technique we would be using.  I vowed to keep my brand new box of crayons away from him.

In the early weeks of the semester we were taken outside to draw various trees around the school.  I was surprised by how easily I was able to realistically represent these natural creations with merely a broken crayon and a pad of paper (yes, I succumbed to the theory that the rough edges of the broken crayon allowed one to sketch leaves and branches more realistically).

All that fall I sketched trees; sitting on the front porch to draw the neighbor's beautiful maple in its coral colored splendor, waiting for my younger sister during doctor visits where I was her chauffeur, drawing the trees surrounding the medical center, taking impromptu breaks from class to sketch again the great oak which gave our school its mascot and yearbook title.  I handed in the required number of drawings.  I don't remember the grade.

Later in the semester we experimented with water colors, with oil paints, with pen and ink, choosing subjects appropriate to the medium.  One girl at my table brought in the cigarette lighter from her boyfriend's mid 1960s model Ford Galaxie to draw in a pen and ink rendering.  I tried painting a glass mason jar with water colors, a disappointing failure.

Best of all were the Ivory soap carvings.  We were allowed to carve in relief or in three-D.  I found a photo of a statue in a book and elected to recreate her in Ivory Soap.  As I recall the project was successful.  I wonder if later my sculpture was relegated to the bathroom for a more practical existence.

I once traced the fashion illustrations on a sewing pattern and handed it in.  As I recall I was given a good grade but I always felt guilty about it.  Likely the teacher knew just how I had achieved the drawing and gave me the grade as punishment.  Or not.

These past few weeks, driving to work, I noticed the maples, ashes, lindens and other neighborhood trees turning to rust, gold, orange and scarlet.  I remembered those school days spent outdoors and those other occasions drawing trees.  The annual occurrence of the leaves turning never fails to amaze all that behold its beauty.

Quotable Quotes; in the category That's The One I Want To Draw!

"Life is about using the whole box of crayons."  RuPaul

Pizza-licious!

I love pizza.  Doesn't everybody?  What I don't love is Chicago style pizza.  And wouldn't you know, I just happen to live . . . . never mind.  My favorite pizza is from my home town.  I won't tell you where that is but I will tell you that Little Caesar's and Domino's need not apply.  Pizza Hut?  Well, it'll do in a pinch but the fact is I cannot get my favorite pizza unless I am visiting family that still live in the home place.  Consequently, I end up making pizza at home much of the time.  It's not as good as what I grew up with but it's better than deep dish.  Or pan.  Or (perish the thought) thin crust.

I have a friend who also makes pizza at home.  She is lavish with toppings - lots of pepperoni and enough cheese to keep the dairy business in business.  I favor a more modest approach when it comes to cheese, and the man prefers a light hand with the sauce.  I like to make my crust from scratch - a basic bread recipe will serve, or any of the dozens of pizza dough recipes available in books or on line.  Sometimes I may use a store-bought crust like Boboli, or I may use frozen bread dough.

Those pizza doughs that come in the cardboard tube, like the crescent rolls, are okay but not big enough or hearty enough.  Save them for making breadsticks.  Nor do I advocate using things like English muffins or pita bread as pizza crust.  Somehow, they just taste like an English muffin or pita bread with tomato sauce and cheese.

But this week I found a new way to make pizza at home quickly and easily.  This is one of those recipes that I wish did not taste good.  I saw it on a television commercial and actually made fun of it until I decided to give it a try.  The crust was made using a cardboard tube of biscuits.  I had ham, sauce and cheese on hand so I decided to give it a try.  Wouldn't you know, I did not have a can of biscuits?

Luckily, they appeared on the next grocery store sale paper and we were in business.  Also on sale was a package of pepperoni.  Now I have nothing against ham on a pizza but if you want to get down to basics, pepperoni is definitely the way to go.

Next time they are on sale, pick up a tube of those biscuits.  Likewise some sauce, cheese and pepperoni or other toppings - or use what you have in the fridge.  Here is the basic recipe with some variations.

Open the package of biscuits and separate them - most seem to come 8 to the package.  Flatten the biscuits, gently stretching and pressing with your fingers, to approximately 6 inch circles.  Organic shapes are also appropriate - the biscuits will take on a life of their own during baking.  Place the "pizza dough" on a greased baking sheet.

Top each with a spoonful of tomato sauce, pizza sauce, spaghetti sauce or whatever is on hand.  Plain tomato sauce can be helped with a pinch of basil, oregano, garlic powder and/or crushed red pepper flakes.  Or make your own sauce from scratch if you are of a mind to.

Now add toppings of your choice - a few slices of ham or pepperoni, and a scattering of cheese.  Pop the pizzas into a preheated 375f oven and bake for 10 to 15 minutes.  Ours were perfect at 13 and 14 minutes.  Remove to a board to cool for a few minutes before serving.  That's it!  Little pizzas with a buttery, flaky crust and tasty toppings, made in just a few minutes and (depending on your sauce and toppings) very little clean  up! 

Give these a try.  If you are more adventurous (or maybe a vegetarian) try these variations.  Use ham, Canadian bacon, pineapple, any kind of cheese, black or green olives, peppers and onions, sliced tomato, garlic, spinach, or just check out the menu from your local pizza place for inspiration.

These little guys would be great for a party appetizer (everybody can make their own) or to make with kids for a quick supper for a party or sleep-over.  Or just any time you want pizza and can't wait the 30 minutes for delivery.

One note - those canned biscuits sometimes come in a "buttery" variety.  I think the plainer versions may be more appropriate, or you may prefer a different cheese and assortment of toppings for the butter style biscuits.  Enjoy!

Quotable quotes; in the category Hey, Toss One My Way! 

"Ideas are like pizza dough, made to be tossed around."  Anna Quindlen

Tico Tico Taco

We bought tortillas and avocados last week.  I wanted to eat them for once instead of having to throw them out, so I made a concerted effort to use them up while they were still fresh.  Tuesday seemed like a good night to have them for supper - there was nothing on TV worth watching that would distract me.  Bill had asked me to make him a quesadilla using his favorite green salsa.  I decided on veggie tacos for myself.  I had veggie tacos at a couple of restaurants and they were very good.  Problem - I did not know what went on a veggie taco.  Solution - peppers and onions.  I had also recently purchased a bag of those mini red, orange and yellow peppers at the market and likewise wanted to eat them before they became a science experiment in the fridge.

I decided beans and rice would be a natural accompaniment and would further allow me to "pantry shop" (code for look on the shelf and use it before buying anything more).  I have a friend who is sympathetic to my plight of an overstocked fridge and pantry.  She says her dad used to have an expression - "ten pounds of stuff crammed into a five pound sack".  An accurate representation.

I found a box of Rice-a-roni, Spanish Rice style, and a can of refried beans.  I diced half an onion for the beans and sliced the remaining onion for the tacos.  I sliced a half dozen of the assorted peppers and a leftover half tomato from the previous day's salad.

Diced onion and tomato went in the skillet for the beans.  Sliced onion and pepper went in a smaller skillet for the tacos.  A token amount of each went in the saucepan with the Rice-a-roni.  The cheese and tortillas, including green sauce, went in another skillet for the quesadillas.  The remaining tortillas were wrapped in a damp towel and placed in the oven in a casserole to warm through.

I somehow learned pretty quickly how to get everything ready at the same time.  For some reason, I don't have to do any math (unless it's Christmas or Thanksgiving dinner) to know when to put everything on so it will be done at the same time.  Lo and behold, just as everything was about done I sliced the avocado and squeezed a lime over it, dished up and had it all on the table at the same time.

Lemme tell ya, a schmear of refried beans and a spoonful of rice make a pretty decent taco all on their own.  Add a topping of seared pepper & onion and some dead ripe avocado and that's tasty!  The fact that there were enough leftovers to make a taco for a snack the next day is only proof that somebody loves me. Taco Bento anyone?

Quotable Quotes; in the category Don't Yell At Me I Only Live Here!

"Well would you mind telling me why there's Rice-a-roni in my coffee?"

Butter's Dad; South Park Season 12 Episode 14

Anglo Saxon Whattitudes?

I loves me a ham sandwich.   My favorite ham sandwiches are those that are cut on the diagonal, especially if they are packed in one of those triangle "sealed with plastic" boxes that you might get in an Amtrak dining car or any place that sells pre-made "fresh cut" sandwiches in England or the US (in England you do not "make" sandwiches, you "cut" them).

The reason the diagonal cut makes them taste best is due to this Tenniel illustration for chapter 7, "The Lion and the Unicorn" from Lewis Carroll's "Through The Looking Glass".  As soon as I realized that the messenger was handing the King a ham sandwich, I decided that a ham sandwich should always be cut this way.  For some reason, when I was a kid, I thought he was handing the King a slice of pizza or something.  I knew it could not be that, but that picture sure did not look any ham sandwich I had ever seen.  All the ham sandwiches I knew were either on rye or pumpernickel bread and cut straight across, never on an angle.

I still don't know how they got that ham sandwich to have that shape (it still does not resemble any ham sandwich I have ever seen) but I content myself to cut my ham sandwiches, no matter the shape of the bread, on the angle.  Then I can remember Alice, the White King and his messenger with the Anglo Saxon attitudes.  If you do not know what that means, don't feel bad.  Neither does anybody else.  For proof, google Alice Anglo Saxon Attitudes and see what you get.  Or just forget about it and re-read Through The Looking Glass.  It's worth it.

Quotable Quotes; in the category But How Many Does It Feed?

"Hors D'oeuvre:  A ham sandwich cut into forty pieces."
Jack Benny

A Good Dressing Down!

I blogged about salads and dressing a bit ago and mentioned I prefer making homemade dressing except for blue cheese.  I also mentioned making dressing in a mustard jar that was almost empty.  Here is another dressing tip.  When your jar of blue cheese dressing is just about empty don't throw it out - yet.  Add a little oil and vinegar, or just add a little of your basic vinaigrette to the jar and shake it all about.  You'll have a tasty blue cheese vinaigrette for your salad

Remember the days of the steak house and the iceberg lettuce salad?  To make a classic steak house salad remove the core and outer, wilted leaves from a head or two of iceberg lettuce.  Cut the lettuce in wedges and place one or two in each salad bowl.

Top with sliced tomatoes or cherry tomato halves (sliced red onion and/or radish optional) and a good dollop of your favorite blue cheese dressing.  For the crowning touch, sprinkle a generous portion of cooked, crumbled bacon and a little crumbled blue cheese on top.  Garnish with freshly ground pepper.

This is a bargain when you consider that a head of iceberg usually sells for about a buck and this salad can cost upwards of $10 in a typical steak house!  (T)-bone appetit!

Quotable quotes; in the category I Don't Know What It Means But I'm Too Tired To Look It Up.

"It is said that the effect of eating too much lettuce is 'soporific'." Beatrix Potter

Don't Put All Your Egg Salad In One Bread Basket

I had egg salad the other day. I love egg salad. I have tried different versions that add minced celery, pickle relish or other things but I just don't care for them. The closest I came was "Bacon and Egg Salad" which just meant adding crumbled bacon to my basic recipe. I was not impressed. The bacon did not stand out and I felt it was a waste of good bacon (luckily the egg salad was fine, with or without the bacon).

I think the reason I prefer my rather plain egg salad is the bread I serve it on. I sometimes use a hearty country style bread but any regular old grocery store bread will do - white bread, a soft whole grain, a denser whole grain - but the very best bread for egg salad is fresh Challah, that soft, golden yellow bread with a shiny brown crust. This lets the egg salad be the star with a good supporting cast. Buy Challah at a deli or wherever you buy your bagels if your grocery store does not have it.

My egg salad is basic and pretty plain. Remember, that's the way I like it. I was just thinking of cooking the eggs in egg coddlers, which I posted on recently. But that would mean a separate coddler for each egg. Too many to wash. Besides, they do just fine inside the shell - and since you'll be mashing the eggs anyway it doesn't matter if they don't peel beautifully.

My friend gave me a couple gadgets. One is a little plastic thing with a spring loaded pin inside. This is for piercing the end of the egg which is supposed to prevent the egg cracking during cooking. it works pretty well.

The other is a contraption with a slotted section to hold the peeled egg and another section that is threaded with wires for slicing the egg. My friend turns the egg in two or three directions in order to dice rather than slice. This guy works okay for slicing eggs for, say, potato salad but for egg salad I just smash everything together with a fork.

Be warned. I never measure. I just add until the taste and texture are about right. Here is my "recipe" for basic egg salad. I usually use about three eggs. This makes the amount of egg salad I know I will eat before I decide I would rather have ham and cheese.

Pierce the broad end of the egg with your egg piercer or a sharp push pin. Be careful not to squeeze the egg too hard or it will break. I sometimes pierce the narrow end too, especially if the eggs are less fresh. Place the eggs in a pan just big enough to hold them in a single layer and fill the pan with cold water to cover the eggs.

Bring to a full boil, then cover the pan and turn off the heat. Leave them for 10 minutes (or longer). Add cold water to the pan, draining out the hot water, and leave them until they are cool enough to handle, about 10 - 20 minutes. Remove the shells and either dice the eggs with your egg slicer or a knife, or just place them in a bowl and smash them with a fork, leaving them as chunky as you like. I like them fairly smooth.

Add a little mayonnaise, about a teaspoon per egg, maybe a little less. Also add a nice blob of any kind of mustard - plain old yellow, brown and spicy, Dijon - I use whatever kind of mustard happens to be open in the fridge. Add a pinch of salt and pepper.

Stir well with the fork, adding a bit more mayonnaise if you like. If you are feeling creative or happen to have any handy, add a pinch of fresh or dried herbs - oregano, basil, tarragon or thyme - or maybe a pinch of cayenne pepper or a drop of Tabasco sauce. Taste as you go and stop when you like it (or when you have tasted all the salad and have to start over).

I love this served on soft, fresh Challah, any whole wheat or whole grain bread, toasted or not, or even on toasted English muffins or bagels! Sometimes I even spread it on crackers, like dip.

If you want to make devilled eggs, just be extra careful peeling the eggs. Slice them in half, mash the yolks with mayo, mustard, seasonings and, if you like, a splash of vinegar or pickle juice and spoon the filling back into the whites. Garnish with a shake of paprika or a parsley leaf.

That's it! Easy, basic, tasty. The way things should be!

Quotable Quotes; in the category Yeah, I Think This Is How I Would Like It To Go!

"My career is pretty much over. I'm out in the Valley eating soft-boiled eggs." Tim Conway

Oh It's The Nuts!

When I posted about Garlic Fried Rice a while ago I promised I would tell you about Garlic Peanuts and Adobo. Well I kept my word on the Adobo so now it's time to come through on the peanuts.

Peanuts fried with garlic can be found at Asian markets all over Chicago, mainly Filipino markets. They are sold in little plastic bags or in little plastic cups - some homemade, others commercially done. I have not met a garlic peanut I did not like. Essentially, they are shelled peanuts cooked in oil with fried garlic bits and whole fried garlic cloves. They are delicious, salty and aromatic. If you like garlic and peanuts you will like these. Here is how I make them - probably not at all authentically, some recipes seem to pre-boil raw peanuts then fry the nuts and garlic separately.

I take a jar of dry roasted or roasted and salted peanuts and put them in a skillet with oil and garlic. I usually chop the garlic fairly fine because I am not cooking the peanuts for very long (they are already roasted). I suppose you could cook whole or sliced garlic cloves until almost crispy. The commercial peanuts often contain garlic cloves still in their papery skins.

When the garlic is almost done I toss in the peanuts and stir and toss until they are coated with oil and heated through. Salt them unless they are already salty enough (the only way to be sure is to taste) and remove from heat to cool before storing in airtight containers or plastic bags.

Alternatively, you can put the peanuts and minced garlic in a baking pan large enough to hold them in a not too deep layer. Toss with some oil and roast in the oven at 250 f about 20 - 40 minutes, stirring every 10 - 15 minutes (imagine you are making that cereal party mix). When the garlic is done, remove from heat, cool and store but not before eating a good handful of these bad boys.

I once took a large container of these nuts with me on a fishing weekend with my brothers. Although we did not finish all the nuts, I was not allowed to bring the leftovers home with me. it was Jon who suggested the oven method. Both yield pretty good results.

If you need amounts figure about 2 tablespoons oil (olive, peanut, corn or whatever) and 4 - 8 cloves of garlic (depending on your love of garlic) for every cup or two of peanuts and go from there.

Quotable Quotes; in the category There weren't any peanut quotes and besides I like this one better.

"You can never have enough garlic. With enough garlic, you can eat The New York Times." Morley Safer